God Used It for Good: Austin's Story
It was a “Shock and Awe” moment
Imagine you’re on a road trip with your family. You’re standing alone, pumping gas at a station while your family is inside the store. It’s the middle of nowhere, just a rest stop right off the highway. Then, a man on a bike approaches. You wonder to yourself why he’s biking to a gas station in the middle of nowhere and where he could possibly be coming from.
He strides toward you, takes hold of your arm gently but firmly, and starts preaching intensely. At you. He talks about repentance and how you’re living your life. He quotes the passage about cutting off your right hand rather than sinning, saying that you’re lying about your faith. But you’ve never even seen him before.
This actually happened to Austin several weeks before his freshman year at the University of Wisconsin – Stout. But what’s even crazier than this story is that it became a launching point for Austin to discover genuine faith. Despite how shocking and dissonant this experience was, God used it in unlikely and powerful ways.
A Turn Toward God
A couple of weeks after this, Austin was helping his twin sister Laura get settled at college. The family went to a random church service that Sunday morning. The topic of the sermon? Repentance.
A powerful feeling washed over Austin as he realized that God might be trying to get his attention. The pastor defined repentance as a 180-degree turn toward God. He spoke with grace and compassion, helping Austin see God’s love rather than judgment or shame.
Two days later, Austin started classes and went to the student organization fair where I was standing at a table for InterVarsity, silently praying that I wouldn’t have any awkward conversations.
“Hey, I’ve been looking for you guys!” Austin said. “My cousins are involved [in InterVarsity], and they say it’s pretty cool.”
We chatted for a bit, and I invited him to our first InterVarsity event. When he showed up, I introduced him to a student leader named Mack, who immediately welcomed him in.
Saying Yes
A month later, when I invited Austin to come to our fall conference, he looked skeptical. But Mack enthusiastically encouraged him to go.
“I’m going too!” he told Austin. And to my surprise, Austin agreed on the spot.
I was delighted and thankful. After all, Austin didn’t know us that well. Now he was going to travel for several hours to attend a conference he’d never heard of.
At fall conference, Austin experienced worship and Scripture in a bigger community of Christian students. When he heard a call to faith one night, he sensed Jesus inviting him into a relationship with him but wasn’t ready to do anything about it.
After learning this, Mack gently suggested they start reading a book about experiencing God’s presence together, and over the next few months, Austin began learning and talking more openly with Mack, me, and his family.
Then, one day, I met up with Austin.
“So it happened,” he said. He went on to tell me that he had decided to follow Jesus! He explained that it wasn’t a single moment of decision. Instead, it was a gradual process of realization that his life was changing — he was already living as a Christian. And so, he said yes.
Ripple Effects
As Austin grew in his faith, God used him to impact the people around him. Soon, his twin sister noticed the transformation and drew closer to God, too! He began volunteering for leadership roles in his InterVarsity chapter and served as a leader from his sophomore year until he graduated. During that time, Austin also became chapter president. He even helped establish a small group for athletes that is now growing into a community of leaders being equipped to start team-based Bible studies.
Austin never could have guessed the ways God would meet him and lead him. While student stories won’t always look exactly like his, God longs to be present in them — and to draw us into his larger story. Will you pray for InterVarsity chapters to be places of welcome on campus, where students like Austin can discover their place in God’s story?
